Our 2017 Seniors Take a Bow

As we are about to open not one, but two, productions this weekend as part of our summer intensive programming, the Duluth Playhouse prepares to say goodbye (for now) to 10 seniors taking the stage one last time with the Playhouse Children’s Theatre and the Teen Intensive summer program. We want to recognize our seniors who’ve brought so much to our productions over their years and let them share their experiences with the Duluth Playhouse and our Children’s Theatre.

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Ben Churchill is headed to UMD next fall. His most embarrassing Playhouse memory was when his beard fell off on stage during Aladdin and he had to pick it up and carry it awkwardly around for the rest of the show. He is currently in Legally Blonde and is playing Grandmaster Chad and Professor Callahan. He loves theater because he loves to sing and be on stage. He is going to miss the opportunity to perform on this stage doing children’s theater with this group of spectacularly wonderfully awesome kids, crew, and directors.

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Kathryn Graham is heading to Augsburg College in Minneapolis in the fall. She is going for a double major in theatre and math. She says, “My favorite Playhouse memory was during the Sweeney Todd and Titus Andronicus intensive, and we were learning sword fighting. We did an exercise where we imagined that they were real swords and fought. I was paired with a very experienced person. It was terrifying but exciting. It felt like a real sword fight and I felt really powerful.” Her most embarrassing moment was during a performance of Fame. She gave a girl a black eye by kicking her in the face during a dance. She has been in six Playhouse productions and can be seen in Legally Blonde, playing Pilar. Kat says the thing she will miss most are all the people, working backstage, and being part of something that has an entire community of people who support it.

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Andrea Hitz will be going to St. Kates in the Twin Cities next year. She is going to double major in psychology and women in international development. She is in Legally Blonde and is playing Enid Hoppes. Her most embarrassing Playhouse moment was during Fame, “I realized I lost my pants 5 minutes before places, and everyone in the girls dressing room was like ‘Why don’t you already have your pants on? How do you lose a pair of pants?’ But don’t worry, I found them,” Andrea says. She will miss the accessibility of being a part of good theater productions especially since she’s not pursuing theater as a career.

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Baliey Stender is going to Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee for musical theater this fall. She is playing Elle Woods in Legally Blonde. Her personal goal for life is to make a noticeable positive impact on the world, to inspire, and to be a bomb ass dancer! She loves theater because it allows people to escape from their everyday lives and feel something. “Theater is my life and always has been. It has made me a better, more well-rounded person. I love it; That’s all I can say,” says Bailey. She will miss the Playhouse family most when she goes to college.

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Daylen Moore is going to UMD for a Bachelors of Fine Arts and Musical Theater. She would like to be involved in theater for the rest of her life. She says she would be content acting and working at a cute local theater until she gets tired of it. Her favorite Playhouse memory was during one of the first shows of Rock of Ages. The band had a playoff song while the audience was supposed to be leaving the theater, and all the actors came onstage and sang with the audience. She is in Legally Blonde and plays Paulette Bonafonte. She will miss the amazing community that has been built from show to show. Daylen also added “I’ll miss being able to spend every day doing what I love with the people I’ve grown familiar and close with.”

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Desmond Scott is currently playing Kyle B. O’Boyle, Aaron Schultz, and Nikos in Legally Blonde. He has been in four Playhouse productions and his favorite actor is Andy Serkis or Sidney Portier. His favorite show was Chicago and he will miss practicing in the Conservatory.

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Madison Grimsbo will be going to UMM in the fall. Her most embarrassing moment was in Lion King JR, and on the end button, everyone looked at Simba on the rock and she looked out at the audience. She is playing Vivienne Kensington in Legally Blonde. She does theatre because, “It’s fun, it’s a good way to meet new friends, it’s just so many artistic outlets and everyone has to bring their A-game every day.” Her favorite show was Chicago and she wants Duluth to “stay fresh.”

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Kelley Schroeder is going to UMD for stage management and a minor in ASL. Her favorite Playhouse memory was during Metamorphosis there was a pool on stage. She fell in a puddle during the show, making a very loud noise and everyone looked at her. Her personal goal for life is to be happy with whatever she is doing. She is in Midsummer, and she is playing Titania and Hippolyta. She will miss the people and the community most about the Playhouse. She would like to add, “Be bold.”

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Lizzie Brock is in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and plays Theseus and Oberon. Her most embarrassing Playhouse memory was in Hamlet “I never once got one of my player lines correct and made a dumb face every single time,” says Lizzie. Her personal goal for life is to help as many people as possible. She will miss the people most about the Playhouse.

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Jacqueline Wright is going to Drake University this fall to get a BFA in Musical Theater. Her most embarrassing Playhouse memory was during Lion King “I was Rafiki and I had a staff with two maracas on it. During the song, ‘He Lives in You’ (the deep, emotional song), a maraca fell off my staff so I just picked it up and shook it to the beat,” she said. She does theater because she says can’t not do it. “When I’m not doing theater, I’m sad. Singing and acting give me a purpose and they make me feel like I belong in the universe,” she says. She will miss the feeling of a second home. She says it will probably be one of the first places she will visit when she comes back from college.